Creed:
I like writing about secular bands whose members call themselves Christians. I perceive they’re trying to remain secular and keep the fanbase, but at the same time, they seek something deeper themselves and/or want to spread subtle messages to fans. I don’t have anything against overtly Christian music per se, but I find tension in the former fascinating.
Check out my article at Christianity Today, Glimpses of God: Creed: Full Circle. An excerpt:
“The not-a-Christian-rock-band Creed was huge in the late 1990s and early 2000s, eventually selling 26 million albums in the U.S. The band’s first three studio releases, My Own Prison (1997), Human Clay (1999), and Weathered (2001), spawned such hits as ‘One,’ ‘Higher,’ ‘With Arms Wide Open,’ and ‘My Sacrifice.’
“Creed began as a crew of college-age friends making music together, and rose from independent band to full-blown arena rock band after signing with Wind-up Records. Opinions about Creed tend to run hot and cold, with little room for lukewarm. Some called them derivative, and others lambasted frontman Scott Stapp’s onstage ‘Jesus’ poses. Rolling Stone called Creed a ‘ham-handed version of early Pearl Jam.’
“Love them or hate them, the band reached stratospheric heights. Stapp confirmed the worst successful-yet-tortured-artist stereotypes, however, when he came crashing down in an alcohol-fueled rampage, dragging the multi-platinum-selling band with him.”
As someone who also stopped a nasty alcohol habit, I’d love to talk to Stapp about his. If you know him, tell him to call me!
Related articles:
Abortion:
I blog about abortion a lot these days. The issue’s become more important to me. Can’t stand the idea of a tiny human being sucked down a sink. Check out my latest Pajamas Media column, The Return of Abortion as a National Issue.
MLK:
Do you subscribe to the Christian Research Journal? I wrote a looooooog article critiquing Martin Luther King, Jr’s theology, to be published in the February/March 2010 issue.
